Quality Open Access Research

Read issue 1.5 of Physiological Reports

The latest issue of Physiological Reports has now closed. The journal is a collaboration between The Physiological Society and the American Physiological Society, and is therefore in a unique position to serve the international physiology community through quick time to publication while upholding a quality standard of sound research that constitutes a useful contribution to the field.

Below are the ‘editor’s choice’ articles for this issue:

The spontaneous electrical activity of neurons in leech gangliaMajid Moshtagh-Khorasani, Evan W. Miller and Vincent TorreSummary: Using the newly developed voltage-sensitive dye VF2.1.Cl, we monitored simultaneously the spontaneous electrical activity, which is segregated in three main groups: neurons comprising Retzius cells, Anterior Pagoda, and Annulus Erector motoneurons firing almost periodically, a group of neurons firing sparsely and randomly, and a group of neurons firing bursts of spikes of varying durations. These three groups interact and influence each other only weakly.

The manipulation of strain, when stress is controlled, modulates in vivo tendon mechanical properties but not systemic TGF-β1 levelsGerard E. McMahon, Christopher I. Morse, Adrian Burden, Keith Winwood and Gladys L. Onambélé-PearsonSummary: This study describes the manner in which tendon strain during chronic loading/unloading affects tendon dimensional and mechanical properties, as well as muscle function. We also determine the degree of association of these adaptations with a growth factor that has pleiotropic effects on muscle and tendon transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β1). We demonstrate that the impact of strain on the muscle–tendon complex (over and above the absolute stress imposed on this unit) optimizes the magnitude of improvement in both tendon and muscular functional characteristics.

Renal angiotensin II type 1 receptor expression and associated hypertension in rats with minimal SHR nuclear genomeJason A. Collett, Anne K. Hart, Elaine Patterson, Julie Kretzer and Jeffrey L. OsbornSummary: Angiotensin II (AII) and its receptors play a major role in the physiology and pathophysiology of blood pressure control. Analysis of different components of the renin–angiotensin system and their heritability was evaluated in a “conplastic” rodent model. AII type 1 receptors, but not other aspects of renin–angiotensin system (RAS) were elevated in the kidneys of hypertensive animals, suggesting a heritable influence of RAS contributing significantly to hypertension.